Jeremiah Tower documentary explores life of mysterious American chef

At first look, it would appear to be, as it's a documentary about one of the first star chefs. But perhaps peering into the mind of a man who, for all intents and purposes, is an artist can be viewed from a distance as well.

Armed only with an architecture degree from Harvard and his own self-taught skills, Tower walked into a job in the kitchen at Chez Panisse in its very early days. His relationship with its founder, Alice Waters, was electric as the restaurant passed from its laid-back, counter-culture style into serious French cuisine under his leadership—and then pivoted to focus on local products.

It was the start of an American food revolution.

Tower left, found backers, and in an alley near city hall, opened Stars in 1989, using his architecture background as well as running the kitchen. It was an immediate hit—in my experience, the food was better than at Panisse—and had a coterie of devoted clients, both high-end and ordinary folks. Tower was charming, glamorous, and famous enough to appear in a Dewar’s Scotch ad.

There’s no clear reason why he left the restaurant and the restaurant world after a decade or so. But he did, cutting off contact with pretty much everyone he knew. He was the mystery man, rumored to be living in Mexico. (That was true, it turns out.)

Then, to the general astonishment of the food world, Tower reappeared to take the helm at that touristy wheezer of a resto, Tavern on the Green in New York City’s Central Park. Chaos and bad reviews ensued; he left after a year.

The film, whose executive producer is Anthony Bourdain, tries to unlock what seems to be the unknowable. Tower cooperated with the film, and much of the dialogue is his. At the time it was made, he had returned to Mexico and was living there. There’s some fascinating home movies of his affluent, peripatetic childhood, with added footage using actors and a voice-over from Tower.

More striking, though, are the appearances by a couple of generations of well-known names in the food world, plus some family members, college friends, and former co-workers. Here’s a chance to see and hear bylines you’ve read for years, such as author James Villas and the sometimes-waspish food writer Regina Schrambling. Bourdain is there, of course, as are Mario Batali, who worked at Stars for a while, and Jonathan Waxman, who followed Tower at Chez Panisse, among many others.

Tower acknowledges he wants to do things with style or not at all. And from a visual standpoint, the film is often quite beautiful. Nevertheless, he’s a solitary and pretty much impenetrable figure, not sharing very much at all of his adult self beyond the professional. What’s beyond that line remains a mystery to us, to the filmmakers, apparently, and perhaps even to him.